The beauty of SCUBA diving is undeniable — an underwater world full of wondrous, and oftentimes strange, environments and creatures that never fail to capture the imagination of any diver. The problem lies in actually getting to the point where the experience can be enjoyed as the complexity and heavy equipment involved with SCUBA diving has a way of scaring off newcomers.

To help, the team at SnorkelDive Innovations designed the STEPDive, a lightweight and highly portable diving system for new and advanced users alike. The system is comprised of three parts: a base station raft that holds an oxygen tank and sports a deck and cargo net to hold gear, a floating depth control unit and a range control clip that controls how far an attached diver can go. Together, the system allows for a step-by-step SCUBA learning experience that eases newcomers into basic diving techniques and good habits and allows advanced divers to go along.

Two to three people can use the system at a time, which is great considering the entire system can fit in a carry-on bag — something no other traditional SCUBA system comes close to doing. In addition, yacht owners can use it to more easily clean their boats!
The campaign recommends certified divers grab a full STEPDive system for about $780. It’s slated to ship in November 2016 should its Kickstarter campaign raise about $33,500 by August 6th, 2016.

The STEPDive has a lot in common with the AirBuddy in that they both make the SCUBA experience accessible to a wider range of people. While the former is slight less capable range-wise, it makes sense being that it claims to be the only system suitable for children 6-16 years of age. Either way, both are suitable for slowly getting the hang of diving, something that will certainly appeal to many.